Hillsborough Fire responding to a small plane crash in cow pasture off U.S. Highway 41

APOLLO BEACH, Florida - Hillsborough County Emergency crews are on the scene of an experimental plane crash in a cow pasture in south Hillsborough County.

Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Debbie Carter says the only person onboard was the pilot, 83-year-old Eugene Massa of Bradenton. According to Carter, Massa was alert and talking when he was airlifted to Blake Hospital in Manatee County.

Carter says the sheriff's office was notified by Manatee County on Sunday morning that a small plane that had just left Manatee Airport and had possibly gone down. The plane had just left the airport when it began to have engine problems, according to the pilot and the tower.

The plane was found in a cow pasture located about 500 feet off U.S. Highway 41.